Sending our kids to elementary school or college, attending a political rally or going to the movies, hanging out at the corner store or walking home with a snack, should not be a death sentence.
No one expects their loved ones to die, even when it’s their time, and when they do the loss and pain is almost impossible to bear. It is substantially worst when it is a senseless death, before their natural time, caused by violence perpetrated by a person with a gun.
You, the one who is left behind, get to go to the hospital or morgue and identify your loved one and then back home to an empty lifeless room, where just moments ago there was a very specific and vibrant life. There was person there you loved deeply. A unique person with wants and desires, personality and humor, scent and emotions and a full future filled with promise, life and more generations to come. And now all that’s left is unbearable heartache and stuff collecting dust, meaningless without the person that was.
There have been many articles written about the 2nd amendment and our constitutional rights to guns (I wrote one myself titled Can We Talk About Guns Now?), many missing the point and intent of the 2nd amendment, which dealt specifically with “Well regulated militia”, the State militarized force then and the National Guard now. And in all the conversations and outrage the carnage continues unabated.
As of yesterday, June 2nd , 2014, there have been roughly 50, 339 death by guns since the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre, December 14, 2010. Why and how is that acceptable? Why are there no real efforts and legislation to educate, regulate, control and limit guns and their use in America? We require training, tests, registration and an ongoing licensing process for driving a car (purpose and intended use = transportation), but no such process and requirements for purchasing and using guns (purpose and intended use = killing).
What we are talking about here is 6 simple reasonable and logical items:
1. Universal Background Checks (no exceptions and loopholes) to make sure those that should not have guns do to mental health issues, violence &/or crime history, immaturity or stupidity, don’t get them. It is estimated that 40% of guns sold in the US are sold without background checks and that makes then available legally to people who should not have them.
2. Limits on Magazine Capacity so reasonable available use for hunting, sport and protection does not lead to ability to kill 30 or more people in one trigger squeeze.
3. Registration (yes you already register to vote, drive a car, practice a profession, serve in military or police, get a credit card, get health insurance, open bank account etc.) so we can track the weapon in case of crimes and killings and hold the responsible party accountable.
4. Limits on the kind weapons you can own which clearly include assault weapons of any kind, machine guns and yes the billionaire next door cannot buy a nuclear weapon or tank even if he/she can afford it.
5. Mandatory licensing and training inclusive of education and safety requirements and tests. Purpose is to make sure everyone who owns a gun knows how to use it, store it and handle it safely to avoid any accidental or unintended death/s by gun.
6. Limits on time and place for use. Guns are dangerous and used to kill. They should not be concealed and taken to bars, restaurants, movie theaters, sporting events, department or hardware stores or any other public assembly place, especially where alcohol is served and violence is likely. We all have brains and it’s time we all put them to good use. Open Carry is just insane and scary almost as much as Concealed Carry, especially in bars (drunk morons and guns-great idea!) and both must stop.
Since there is no national gun registry it is unclear how many people in America actually own guns, although that number is declining. A few numbers to think about:
1. It is estimated that there are 270 million guns in the US (89 per 100 people), the most of any country, followed 2nd by Yemen (55 per 100 people).
2. Ownership is declining from 53% claiming they own a gun in 1973 to 32% in 2010.
3. Men are 5 times more likely to own a gun and double that if married.
The rights of those gun owners are supposedly represented by the NRA. Yet the NRA membership is a meager 3.1 million, out of around 70 million people who claim to own guns. (And even if we take Wayne LaPierre at his word and the NRA membership number is 5 million, it is still a very small number, especially compared to the 78% of Americans who say they want stronger gun control since any increase in number of guns, has a corresponding increase in number of injuries and deaths (for every 1% gun sales increase, gun homicide rates increase by 0.9%).
And yet the carnage continues and the reasonable, logical and meaningful controls are nowhere to be found.
It is time to stop accepting the political games in DC and the illusionary influence of the NRA–the megaphone for the gun manufacturers–and start listening to the American people (mothers, fathers, grandparents, kids, siblings, friends, loved ones and any and all sentient humans left) and to follow reason and logic. It is time to stop this gun insanity and carnage and build a framework that allows hunters and gun sports enthusiast, as well as those that need guns for protection, to safely coexist with the rest of us in a sane and civilized society that provides all of us the opportunity to live, pursue happiness and not die before our time from gun violence.
The NRA likes to claim that “guns don’t kill people, people kill people”. Why then do we as a society have to make it easy for people to kill people by providing them with guns without checks, education, training, registration and controls?
For perspective and illustration of what this is all about, this is for the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre victims, and all other gun violence victims before and since, all forever in our thoughts and prayers.
Photo: Neil Fitzpatrick /Flicker
Second Photo: Jerry Dougherty /Flicker
Second Gun Safety piece by Tsach Gilboa
https://goodmenproject.com/ethics-values/can-we-talk-about-guns-now/
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This “article” lost all credibility when the author tried to say that all the mass shootings were done with automatic weapons.
I am not advocating any of this. Obviously balance between “capitalism” and “socialism” is required under the framework of a democracy. we are close in the US but require some adjustments to resolve issues ion income inequality, equal rights, gender equality, freedom, poverty, healthcare, immigration, gun sanity etc. My article only dealt with the gun issue which is critical.
In reading over the platform of the Venus project, here is what I’ve gathered: Structurally it suggests a centrally planned economy with central allocation of all capital where all economic exchanges take place. All resources are communally owned. Education is compulsory and run by the state. All production is nationalized. Language is rewritten to conform to the philosophical goals of the central planning authority. This approach of creating a society based on universal equality is nothing new. In fact, this idea was published in 1848 by a German fellow in a book titled “Das Kommunistische Manifest”. As I recall, history… Read more »
Thanks Wes. This is fascinating and worthy of debate and study. However, restructuring our relationships with guns is a much easier task with plenty of good examples around the world and in the US on how to do it and make the world better for all. There is an expression I will loosely translate from Hebrew “one cow at a time,” the idea being you tackle on task at a time and then move to the next. Let’s start with the gun disaster and move on to the much larger world financial issue.
Considering crime is going down and gun ownership is declining, common sense and civilization might still win the argument and the day. Let’s hope sanity will prevail and we will implement the necessary measures to move forward to a safer and nicer society where all of us and our families will live and pursue happiness.
If you want a saner society go to http://www.thevenusproject.com which is the brainchild or engineer and architect Jaques Fresco. He argues that our currency based economy is the cause of our current problems and needs to be replaced with a resource based one. War and crime are two of the results of the inefficiency of a money based system.
And more guns do? Don’t you see that your idea of more guns just makes everything worst. In every country (Australia as one example) where they passed strict sanity controls on guns, gun killings went way down and no mass shootings. More guns = more death and an uncivilized society. You might want to live in such a country, 78% of us decided we do not. There is a better way and yes, it involves smart solutions based on what works and not fear reactions to extreme scenarios that seldom happen. People with guns are much more likely to die… Read more »
All of these items would reduce carnage. Mass shootings and killings have benefited from large capacity magazines and all would have significant lower number of victims if, indeed, the killers had to change magazines mid way (giving others a chance ti stop them). Further we are not in the 18th century, evolution is a fact and as times change society must change and evolve. The 2nd amendment was written for a particular time and did refer to a MILITIA not every tom, dick or nancy having an arsenal in their home is the 21st century or the 18th for that… Read more »
I hope you never have to find yourself in a shooting situation when you are unarmed and at the mercy of someone else. I don’t keep two extinguishers at home because I WANT a fire to break out. I would rather have them and not need them than need them and not have them. Same with a gun. When you asked why I needed one, you assumed ill intent on my part. If you have served in the military and been in war then you know those same weapons kept you alive. Comparing guns to toys and cars is a… Read more »
Sadly, I went to one (funeral) recently and worse yet, two days ago, a son of a friend who is a police officer was shot in a drive by near his home in Chicago. Again, I guarantee the guns used were not legal. you said “Guns on the street can be minimized if there is a strong system in place with concentration on solutions to poverty, education and respect. Or we can go on, play the helpless ostridge and laugh about it while people all around us die.” Sounds good, so when are people gonna start doing it? Best case… Read more »
About your “reasonable and logical items”: Universal Background Checks: Would not have stopped Elliot Rodgers, Seung-Hui Cho, Adam Lanza, nor Klebold and Harris. The guns they used were purchased legally through FFL’s who did background checks. Limits on Magazine Capacity: First of all, not a single one of these mass shooting sprees used fully automatic weapons so the “ability to kill 30 or more people in one trigger squeeze” is hogwash. Changing a magazine takes about 3 seconds for an untrained person to do and under half that with training so the idea that decreased magazine capacity has anything to… Read more »
In regards to a “well regulated militia”, you need to understand common parlance of the 18th century. The word “regulated” as used in the Second Amendment means “well equipped” and “observant of method”. Basically, that the militia (which at the time meant every able bodied male that was not part of a standing army) needed to be well armed and proficient in the use of their weapons.
Federal agents and police do have gun control. It may not be perfect and may not suit your world views but they are background checked, trained, registered and subject to the law in every way. What you are talking about is policy, and with that I agree.The policy should be revised, but even as is, it is subject to laws and prosecutions/suits and we always know who they are since they are registered. As far as “only idiots play with guns” I fully agree with that as well. My issue is that under the current state of play, “idiots” have… Read more »
So cops and Federal Agents never shoot the wrong person or misuse their weapons? Lt Col Bateman believes that only soldiers are properly able to handle weapons despite three separate shootings on military bases by soldiers. They do not have some mystical, Jedi-like mastery over weapons and it is a serious mistake to think that they do There is a psychological term called hoplophobia which refers to fear of an object, in this case guns. Are you sure you are not speaking from this condition?
We do not know each other personally, but I served in the military and fought in a war. Have you? If you have not than you are the stereotypical pro gun guy who has no idea what they are talking about, but may have a fetich with guns. Do you? If you read my two articles, which I suspect you did not, at least not with an open mind, you would not have asked me the question that you did. Of course police and federal agents and soldiers sometimes shoot the wrong people, they are people after all and some… Read more »
When Fidel Castro took power he asked the Cuban people what they needed guns for. And the word I think you were trying to use is “fetish” ,not “fetich”. As you said, humanity is far from perfect, and the cold, hard truth is that the only way to stop someone with a gun is another gun. Even then there are nonlethal options like rubber tip bullets and beanbag or Taser rounds for shotguns. Legislating against objects is useless. When the Japanese invaded Okinawa they banned all knives and the Okinowans responded by developing some of the deadliest forms of unarmed… Read more »
I have yet to hear a rational reasonable argument why the steps I proposed in my piece to educate, register and regulate guns that kill are not the appropriate, rational and right thing to do. What exactly is the fear reaction here? Big bad government will come get your toys? Toys who’s purpose is to kill! That is so far out there and makes no sense. There is no reason not to have rational gun control. The 2nd amendment (please read it) specifically talks about “well regulated militia” and not people walking around to target and home depot with rifles.… Read more »
I noticed you didn’t address my points about gun control for cops and Federal Agents. Was wondering why. For the record, only idiots “play” with guns.
How do you feel about Tasers? 9-11 could have been just another day if the people on those planes had been allowed to carry them. The hijackers knew they would be unarmed and therefore helpless. Let’s also talk about how many people are killed every day by police and Federal Agents, yet no one calls for “gun control” on them. They dress in black, wear Nazi helmets and use full-auto military weapons to “enforce the law.” Or let’s talk about hypocrites like Dianne Feinstein who has armed bodyguards and a concealed carry permit for a pistol yet is rabidly antigun.… Read more »
Semi-automatic means one round is fired each time the trigger is pulled.
I’m so sick of uneducated, uninformed idiots who say assault rifles are the enemy. You’ve got to be kidding me. The only difference between an assault rifle and Pappy’s .22 rifle is that the assault rifle has a pistol grip, rather than a handgrip incorporated into the buttstock. This is a completely cosmetic addition to an otherwise regular hunting rifle. It adds comfort and nothing else. I’ve spent four years as a rifleman in the Marine Corps, have been on three deployments and have seen my fair share of shit. Yes, military weapons have the capability to fire on full… Read more »
Have you heard of Lt Col Robert Bateman? He is a Chairborne Ranger who believes Americans should be disarmed except for muskets, pump shotguns and bolt action rifles because only soldiers can safely handle weapons. The three separate shootings on military bases proved that false. I e-mailed him and asked if he would be wearing a UN beret and taking orders from foreign officers when he tried to carry out his disarmament plan. Never got a reply.
Eric, it was sad that this article didn’t last long because I missed what you said. OUTSTANDING Sir. My hat is off to you.
More than half of gun deaths are suicides. Of the remaining, around 90% are gang related. This leaves about 2000 gun murders with legal guns per year in a country with as many guns as you mention. Really not that much. We could make driverless cars mandatory and save more lives. You’re more likely to be killed by police than a mass shooting, which by the way account for fewer deaths than cars crashing into deer.
2000 isn’t that many? Really?
Read the 2nd amendment. It talks about a “Well regulated militia” not individual people and the founding fathers did not intend to have guns in every house, that is insanity. Guns did kill those people. Without guns they would still be alive. And if you read the article, you clearly saw that I was not talking about getting rid of all guns but making sure we have gun sanity in America and reduce the carnage which includes all six items I explain above (please read with an open mind). And finally I used the facts and they are undisputed. All… Read more »
“I ask sir, what is the militia? It is the whole people except for a few politicians.”
– George Mason (father of the Bill of Rights and The Virginia Declaration of Rights)
When Ronald Reagan tried to abolish the BATF, he was ironically opposed by the NRA. They also supported the 1968 Gun Control Act which was an almost word for word rewrite of the one Hitler used in Germany. As far as the militia/National Guard argument, the first Guard units were not formed until 109 years after the Second Amendment was ratified, so clearly that argument is flawed.
“He who would trade liberty for some temporary security, deserves neither liberty or security.” – Ben Franklin. There is no such thing as a reasonable gun restriction. The second amendment is very clear that the rights of the people SHALL NOT be infringed. And before you say that the founding fathers were only thinking of muskets and the like I suggest you go look up the puckle gun. The amendment was relevant then and is relevant now. For the record, I own one gun, a .22 survival rifle that I keep collapsed unless Im using it. Gun control is not… Read more »
The pro-gun side believes that the measures you lay out are just the beginning of a ban on guns. With the lack of trust we’ve created in our political system they have no reason to believe otherwise. Just another price we pay for accepting liars as leaders. And just a correction to something that I see pop up in these articles. The National Guard has it’s roots in the state militias, but that’s where it ends. The feds and the US military run the guard units. Hence the name, National Guard.
In May, there were 38 murders in Chicago where a gun was used. In April there were 28 murders where guns were used, 18 in March, 18 in February and 21 in January. Do ya think these were legal guns that were used? I’ve had a gun in my home for almost 40 years. I raised two kids while having a gun in my house and never had anything close happen that put any of my family in danger. When I asked clients who I work with, kids from the inner city of Chicago about gun legislation and they laugh.… Read more »
It’s not simply about legislation. It’s about education, control, regulation, safety and common sense. For every person such as yourself that has a good track record and was lucky with no “accidents”, there are many deaths and injuries because of misuse of guns. The fact that there are guns out there does not mean there is no problem, there is, as you indicated from the high number of deaths and we need to solve it. Laughing about it might make your clients feel falsely good, but the fact remains that we loose thousand upon thousands every year to senseless gun… Read more »